Two fans killed and several injured in fan crush in South Africa

The stampede occurred at the Soweto derby between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates

Two fans died after a stampede at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg (Getty)

At least two people are dead and several more injured after a fan crush at South Africa’s biggest stadium in Soweto, according to state broadcaster SABC.

The incident took place at the FNB Stadium, a 87,000-capacity ground located in Johannesburg, during the Soweto derby match between South African Premier League rivals Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates on Saturday.

The officer for public safety in Johannesburg, Michael Sun, confirmed the two deaths on Twitter, and announced that all stadium gates had been opened to “ensure crowd control”, although he also said that the match would continue as planned.

“Situation report from FNB Soweto Derby: Stampede reported with multiple injuries, 2 confirmed fatal,” Mr Sun wrote on Twitter.

“Soweto Derby update 2: All gates opened to ensure crowd control, game set to continue, ambulance capacity increased. Situation under control.”

The match was shown live with Reuters reporting that television footage showed no obvious disruptions, and Kaiser Chiefs went on to win 1-0.

The match went ahead as planned with Kaizer Chiefs beating the Orlando Pirates 1-0 (Getty)

The stadium staged the Fifa World Cup final in 2010 when Spain beat the Netherlands 1-0, and also hosts the South African national team along with Kaiser Chiefs. The hosted the former South African president, Nelson Mandela, when he gave his first speech after being released from prison in 1990, as well as holding a memorial for him soon after his death in 2013.

In April 2001, 43 fans were killed in another crush during a game between the same two teams at the nearby Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg.